Yesterday marked the Summer Solstice,the longest day of the year, and the beginning of the astrological sign Cancer. Tuesday night, June 24th, 2014, at 7:30 PM at Teance Tea Shop on 4th Street in Berkeley, we will convene our long-running Tea & Dharma gathering. Tomorrow's topic will be "Stories and Songs Of the Summertime." Please come with a favorite story to share from your own childhood (or adulthood) that involves the summer time.

When did you last have that "endless summer" feeling,with its infinite innocence and infinite possibilities? Did summer mean family vacations? A birthday (for you Leos and Cancerians and Virgos!) Did it mean family trips to the lake or road trips around the country? Did it mean summer jobs or summer schools? Do you have a memory of lazy days and hazy nights on the dock under the stars or perhaps a ritual of passage that marked a sudden awareness of time passing; a time that marked transition from childhood to maturity?

Please join us to share a story about your appreciation of summer: a flavor, a family custom, a relationship, a journey. There will be songs, (oh those summer songs!) puppets, fantastic teas to sample and fellowship galore!

In the Buddha's time, peacocks were fierce, respected soldiers who guarded the Dharma and beings who cultivated according to the Buddha's instructions. This fine fellow lives at the City of Ten Thousand Buddhas in Talmage, California. (To see him larger, click on the picture.)